Sheila E. Disapproves of Prince Hologram

Earlier today, news arose that Justin Timberlake’s Super Bowl performance would reportedly include an appearance by a Prince hologram. Now, Sheila E. has voiced her disapproval of the hologram on Twitter, writing, “Prince told me don’t ever let anyone do a hologram of me. Not cool if this happens!” Sheila E. later said that she spoke with Timberlake, who apparently assured her that there won’t be a Prince hologram at the Super Bowl. Pitchfork has reached out to representatives for Timberlake and Prince’s estate for further comment.

As the FADER points out, Prince also expressed disapproval over holograms in a resurfaced interview with Guitar World from 1998. When he was asked, “With digital editing, it is now possible to create a situation where you could jam with any artist from the past. Would you ever consider doing something like that?,” Prince responded:

Certainly not. That's the most demonic thing imaginable. Everything is
as it is, and it should be. If I was meant to jam with Duke Ellington,
we would have lived in the same age. That whole virtual reality
thing... it really is demonic. And I am not a demon. Also, what they
did with that Beatles song ["Free As a Bird"], manipulating John
Lennon's voice to have him singing from across the grave... that'll
never happen to me. To prevent that kind of thing from happening is
another reason why I want artistic control.